WASHINGTON, November 15 (RIA Novosti) - A judge in the US state of Nevada has decided against forcing a mentally disabled pregnant woman to have an abortion after a tentative agreement was reached in court Wednesday to help her through her high-risk pregnancy.
The 32-year-old woman, whose identity is not being disclosed because it remains unclear if the pregnancy was conceived by rape, has the mental capacity of a six-year-old and became pregnant 13 weeks ago after she wandered from her Reno group home.
The woman and her Catholic parents have wanted the pregnancy carried to term, while her doctor has said that he is concerned about the pregnancy in part because she has epilepsy and takes anti-seizure medications. The woman is also bipolar and has severe fetal alcohol syndrome.
However, the judge ruled that the evidence so far does not show a medical necessity to abort the unborn child and agreed that the woman should be allowed to carry out the pregnancy.
It is not clear who the father is, if the sex that resulted in her pregnancy was consensual or not – or even if the woman is truly capable of consenting.
The woman’s parents say they have identified at least half a dozen prospective parents able and eager to adopt the child and care for it under any circumstance.
Because of the woman’s limited mental capacity, the complex nature of the case and a Nevada law that grants doctors some authority over vulnerable individuals, the case has turned into a complex weave of court filings and medical records.
The woman and several siblings were rescued by their adoptive parents from Costa Rica in 1992. The couple had legal guardianship of the girl until she turned 18.
